Mar 10, 2014

This is a delicious way to prepare cauliflower. It's similar to the taste of a potato pancake and makes a fabulous side dish – your kids will love them!

My Sicilian friend Julia is a wonderful cook. I remember the first meal I ate in her NYC apartment; lamb chops and fried cauliflower which she calls broccoli a pasteta. She joked that day you can fry a sponge and it would taste good – she's probably right. These are a lightened version of her recipe, made with Pecorino Romano, parsley, egg, garlic, white whole wheat flour and just enough oil to saute them in a pan.

Steam the cauliflower in 2 1/2 cups water over medium heat until tender, about 5 to 6 minutes. Drain and quickly rinse under cold water to stop it from cooking. Chop the cauliflower into smaller pieces with a knife once steamed and measure to make 5 cups. Set aside the rest for another use.

In a large bowl, combine the steamed cauliflower, flour, garlic, eggs, grated cheese, parsley, 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt and pepper. Add water so that batter becomes slightly more dense than pancake batter.

Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, add 1 teaspoon of oil coating bottom of the pan. Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to form fritters. You can fit 4 fritters at a time, flattening them slightly with the back of the measuring cup. Cook until golden brown, about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes on each side. Repeat with the remaining oil and batter 3 more times.

This is the 2nd recipe of yours that I have recently tried and YUMMY!! They are just like potato pancakes only with cauliflower and much healthier. I will definitely make them again and hubby and I loved them. Thanks for sharing your recipes. -

Gina, I love all of your recipes and am waiting for your cookbook some day. The pictures of your food are so beautifully done, but when I print the recipe I don't necessarily need the picture too. It wastes ink when all I really need are the words.

Dear Gina,I just stumbled on your site....OMG!! I'm in heaven! I unfortunately fell off the wagon, I had lost over 25 lbs on counting points with WW and unfortunately gained back 5lbs in the last month, but I'm back and am going to use your recipes in getting back into better shape and hopefully lose the 5 lbs I gained and hopefully lose another 10 lbs or more. Your recipes are amazing, and I mean every single one of them. Easy to follow and the pictures are great! I am now inspired to get back into my bubble. Thanks so much! I am forwarding to all my friends. oh, when I reach my goal, I will write to you again. thank you thank you thank you!

Hello to every one!!!!!!!!!! I just discovered WW and trying to follow the rules. I loved the recipes and thank you Gina so much!!!!!!!!!! I have a question The 137 cl is for one cauloflower pancake or number of them?

whoa! My hubby is a retired chef and his comment was "outstanding" to these fritters. I've done WW before and got bored with the grilled chicken breast kind of dinners since I love to cook tasty food (and have a love of cheese, which I couldn't find decent WW receipes for). Your receipes are easy, quick and have the right amount of bite and texture needed to satisfy. Thank you. Ciao bella

Dear Gina,We're practically neighbors! I live in Suffolk county. I made these fritters for Thanksgiving and everyone loved them! I'm converting my whole family into veggie eating foodies!! Thank you very much!...How about posting a recipe for cream of onion...I heard someone at my WW meeting talk about it and would love to have you post a "skinny" version of this soup.Warm regards, Roxby from LI, NY

Gina,I made these and love love love!!!! I cook for just myself so I saved the batter and stored it in the fridge and had these fritters for dinner the next few nights it took minutes for dinner to be done which is great when you are working 10 hour days! Thanks so much for this recipe!

I made these last night and they were awesome! My question is.... I only came out with 9 fritters. Your recipe states that it yields 24, so I'm wondering if I did something wrong. I used the 1/4 measuring cup as suggested.

I'm new to the site, but not to weight watchers, I've got a folder full of recipes that I choose from each night. I can't wait to add to them with some of your recipes, they look great, and I'm sure I'll be able to fool my kids with them too! Thanks for all of your work

My kids love cauliflower so I made these over the weekend. Super easy to make and they had a smooth/creamy texture with the crispy outside. A big hit with my family and I will make these again. Thanks!

I made a half recipe of these today, we had them with some lowfat chicken & veg soup for lunch. Really, really tasty, and I'll be making them for the whole family soon. Thanks, and I am enjoying exploring your site.

WOW made these last night with the fried chicken recipe..... sooooooo good! Even my hubby liked them and he is not easy to please when it comes to veggies. I have leftovers for lunch and I am so excited! Another wonderful keeper!

Gina this is my new favorite recipe! Excellent! I must tell you that I used two heads of cauliflower instead of one to get 4 overfull cups. Also used parmesan cheese instead of Romano because that is what I had in the fridge. I cooked them on a non stick griddle with Pam-type spray and my yeild was about 26-28 fritters. I believe cutting out the oil had NO effect on the taste just cut the calories down to one point per fritter. These freeze nicely too. I fooled 1 out of 3 kids when I told them they were "potato pancakes", not bad for my picky crew. Thanks :)

Day 2 of trying your recipes. I'm making these right now and just tasted the first batch -- AMAZING! I added scallions instead of parsley, which really makes them taste like scallion pancakes. I even added a low-fat ginger dipping sauce. Really super yummy.

Gina, i'm new to weight watchers and love your recipes , so easy to follow your pictures are great and the points makes it a breeze..than you soo much..my husband and i love the cauliflower like this..keep the great recipes coming

Hi Gina, I feel silly for asking this, but when you say 4 cups of cauliflower, are you measuring prior to steaming or after? I forgot to measure before steaming and I only have 2 3/4 cup of steamed/chopped cauliflower---I'm not sure if I should change the measurements of the other ingredients in order to make them properly. Any help you could give me would be great---I am not so great in the kitchen but am getting better!! Thanks!!!

I am confused. I made these last night. A friend of mine made them too the same night. Followed your recipe above. We both got 12 fritters and when calculated on spark recipe builder each fritter ( 1 ) is 122 calories and 6.8 grams of fat. For 2 that is 244 calories and almost 14 grams of fat. Mine look the same as the photo above and taste pretty good but I am concerned that the calorie/points is do not match up. I do enjoy your blog ...I do not mean this to be hurtful but thought I should let you know.

Hi Robyn, question... did the cauliflower come out to 4 cups? I think I need to change the directions to read 4 cups of cauliflower because I may have used a large one making this and not all cauliflowers are the same. If you only got half the fritters I did, it sounds like you didn't. Also, I will go back and check my notes on points and make sure I am not missing something. I do make mistakes sometimes :(

I hope you didn't take my comments as too harsh. Because I do really like this recipe and plan on trying others. Maybe I put more into the measuring cup ..who knows....again I just wanted to let you know. I know its important to keep track off calories/points.

One easy way to solve printing problem. I always place my mouse at the beginning of the recipe and then drag it to the end of the recipe, highlighting the recipe. Then I go to "file" at the top left of screen, click "print," then when your print screen comes up choose "selection" and only the portion you had highlighted will print. At least this works with my HP printer. Could be that other printers would work differently, I suppose.

I believe it is 1.25 point less per serving. I would have to re-figure the points to be sure. I had trouble using Pam, they kept sticking but I see a lot of you had success. The great news is you can eat more for less points!

It worked well for us but we used an electric griddle. I have to tell you they were good, but since I have had them with the oil I think it was missing a little yumminess. I might use pam and a touch of oil next time and see if that works. Thanks again!!

Made these for the first time tonight. Just found your blog last week and took my weekly menu right from it. They were AWESOME! I put a sauce with them. Light sour cream, milk, parm, chives, pepper and garlic. Your fritters were great and the sauce added a tartness. YUM YUM. I'm a fan.

Hi Gina, fabulous recipe!! I made these over the weekend and followed your recipe exactly (except I added a little crushed red pepper) I ended up with only 16 fritters (I measured them out with 1/4 cup, not rounded)... that is a lot less so I know that must have changed the points total. Just wondering if you have made them more than once and ended up with substantially less? Either way, I will make the recipe again, will just add a C. or more cauliflower! keep up the yummy work :) -Shaunna

My husband & I love these. I made them for the third time last night, this time trying frozen cauliflower instead of fresh. Neither of us could tell a difference in the taste, and it made prep a little bit easier. Thanks again for such a great recipe!

I stumbled upon your blog by pure accident. After looking around a bit, I stumbled upon the cauliflower fritters recipe and as I happened to have cauliflower in the frig, I immediately proceeded to make it for dinner for the family. The fritters are AMAZING. Seriously, we are pretty gourmet in my household and everyone gave this recipe an "excellent" rating. My only complaint is that although these are healthier, I can't eat just one...or two. So, I spent 10 points on fritters last night. Well worth it.

Thanks so much for this great recipie! Didn't have whole wheat flour so we used all purpose, but it worked just as well. Also, these make great left overs if you pop them in the oven for just a few minutes. They crisp right up!

hey gina,wonderif you can bake these instead of frying them to save on the calories from oil? great blog, you are a god send to me! you have turned me onto cooking, and cooking healthy to boot!thank you!

I made these last night. I am learning how to cook (and not mess things up, LOL) & I want to say that although I did not really care for these, because they were just really "different" (But not bad) and I personally won't make it again -- I will say that this recipe was EXTREMELY easy to make, and to cook...I have a hard time knowing when the pan it hot enough, or getting it too hot, etc...and I am sooo proud of myself that I made these JUST LIKE THE PICTURES =) So, I would say that this recipe was great especially for beginners, but the taste of cauliflour was really different to me.

Gina,I've been using your recipes for over a month now and I love them! I tried this cauliflower recipe and it looked like hamburger patties! My husband is a vegetarian and he loved them, so this is his new vegiburger. Thank you for the recipe. I make them up ahead and freeze them, and take them out as I need them

Wow Gina, I just made these and they are fantastic. I am using a non stick pan (from Christmas Tree Shops no less) and don't need as much oil (no sticking) but the oil is helping them brown. These are sooooooo good! And a head of cauliflower is cheap!

i made these today and they were great! my 2yr daughter even ate them and she hates veggies! i used frozen cauliflower too cuz it was easier and cheaper. i was so amazed how much they really taste like potatoes! thanks for all your great recipes!

Yum Yum Yum!! I'm so happy I found your site! I added a little grated onion and a dash of nutmeg to these, then served them topped with a little of your leftover Pernil pork, some pickled red onions (my recipe) and aji. Quick, easy and deee-licious!

I made these today for lunch, I only had 1 small cauliflower so I added some grated zuccini,onions and red bell pepper. They were fantastic. My family loves veggies but I have to add bold flavors I think I'm going to try adding a little bit of curry powder. Thank you so much for the great recipes.

Hey Gina, I LOVE this recipe! And, every other recipe of yours that I have made. One quick question, was I supposed to measure the cauliflower before or after steaming to get the 4 cups? I started w/ 4 cups raw and only ended up with 12, 1/4 cup servings of the fritters. Just curious! Thanks again for all of your hard work!

I made these for the first time tonight and loved them. My friend loved them! Though I only got 9 fritters from the batter. Perhaps my head of cauliflower wasn't that big. I'm going to try two heads the next time. You have a great blog and the photographs are so lifelike. Keep up the good work. I'll be trying other recipes you have. Thanks for all your hard work and making it easier for me!

Made these for dinner tonight as a side dish with your turkey meatloaf! I used two different pans, one with oil and one with cooking spray. For me, they turned out the same! So I ate the ones with spray and my boyfriend ate the ones in oil. I will make these again. I had 4c of cauliflower, but it only made 14 1/4c fritters. So Ill try next time and see if I did something wrong! Oh and for dessert later we will have your strawberry cheesecake that I made this afternoon!! Ill comment on that recipe after I eat it, although I already know it will be awesome! I used to never cook til I started WW recently and found your blog. Ive made so many things on here and they are all great! Thanks!

made these today, and thought they were awesome. This is the second recipe I have made and was wonderful. My husband tried it and said mmm, very good, what is in it?? I told him, then they weren't good anymore, as it was cauliflower, he is just like a kid. :)

I just found your blog and love it! I have always loved cooking and doing Weight Watchers has really forced me to actually measure and write down my recipes! I am going to make this recipe sometime this week, and I only have all-purpose flour on hand. I do a lot of cooking, but not a lot with flour so I was just wondering if the all-purpose could be substituted for the wheat? (although I am sure it will change the points+ value).Thanks! - Emily

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your recipes and hard work. But most especially, califlower! I never would have tried it until I saw your photos. Thanks for this. OH, and a tip for the lady trying to print. Just right click and select the text, when you go to print choose the 'selection' option and hit print. It will only print out the text and not the photo. ;)

Made these last night and am in love with them. They look so fancy! And taste even better. I used frozen cauliflower, just cooked it in my microwave vegetable steamer and chopped it up. They were perfect!

I made these last night with the Santa Fe Chicken. I was trying to use Cauliflower grated as a sub for rice in the "Cilantro Rice" recipe, so I used part of the cauli head for these fritters. It was all delicious and light! Thanks Again Gina!!!

It is Good Friday so I made battered haddock and steamed cauliflower, I saw this recipe a few days ago and now having left over steamed cauliflower and batter left I will so try these, Love all Gina's recipes and I am positive this will be another rolling the eyes and num num recipe :-), Happy Easter everyone!!!Claudia

On a side note, I pointed out the recipe on the recipe builder and got 2 points per fritter. I got 12 fritters as the recipe calls for. I also used half the oil and the points still came out higher. This is still yummy though, even at 2 points per fritter. Thanks Gina!

My family absolutely flipped over these! My husband hates cauliflower so I told him they were potato. He loved them and ate the whole batch for a meal! I have made them many times since for guests. I did make the mistake of measuring the cauliflower before it was cooked and after being cooked, it was very little. The second time I cooked 2 heads of cauliflower to make enough cooked. I measure them exactly and can't quite get 24, I got more like 18, but they are SUPER YUMMY!

I made these last night with the chicken piccata! DELICIOUS! My husband posted something on his facebook that he fell in love with me all over again. It was so good! I will definitely be making both again soon.

Holy Crap! These were absolutely amazing. I LOVE cauliflower, but sometimes, plain old steamed veggies can get a little boring. I was so excited when I saw this recipe. I had planned to make this two weeks ago and for one reason or another, every time I planned to make them, something came up and I wasn't able to. Finally got it together and made them this past weekend. They taste like a combination of fried cauliflower (one of my favorite pizza night apps) and potato pancakes. I think I would eat these every day if I could. Thank you so much for this DELICIOUS recipe!

I made these, last week, and they were outrageously good!!! So simple, and the measurements/yield was spot on!!! The only thing I did differently was use scallions in place of parsley...only because I had to make them, as soon as I read the recipe, and didn't feel like running to the store, just for parsley. (It annoys me when I read a recipe, and people leave comments about how they "improved" the original) Just like JenniferAnne said, they so reminded me of fried cauliflower...previously, my favorite way to prepare! I will be making these often! Your recipes are wonderful, Gina!!!! Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge and talent with us!!!

Gina - I am wanting to try these for my kids. My two year old is allergic to soy, dairy and corn. Do you think I could substitute the cheese for something???? I have yet to find ANY non soy, dairy or corn cheese out there (even the veggie cheese has soy in it). What do you think I could put in there that will give it taste and let it stick together?

I think it would work without the cheese, the cheese just gives it lots of flavor so it would need more salt. Maybe separate the batches so that yours has cheese and his doesn't so you can enjoy them the way they are meant to be.

These little fritters are a THUMBS UP! So delicious and what a great way to use cauliflower, alternatively. So easy and delicious. I recommended this recipe to some co-workers and they are hooked as well. I have also done the same recipe with zucchini, delish :)

OMG THESE ARE AMAZING!!!i had to sub regular flour instead of wheat; and some spices for stuff i didn't have -- but they were so addictive!!! i made this with the ground turkey stuffed zucchini and dinner was GREAT!! Thank you!!!

I made these tonight and they were even better than I was hoping for! So good! I cooked them on our counter top griddle with just a little bit of cooking spray, no oil, and they turned out great! My Jewish friend told me that with traditional Latkes, they dip them in (fat-free) sour cream and apple sauce. I tried it with these..... YUM!!!!

My batter looked nothing like your picture, did you mean 4 cups after they're steamed and chopped or 4 cups of cauliflower chopped and raw? I added more water, flour, and wasn't sure how much salt or pepper, they still turned out really good.

Made these last night - changed them up a little, though. Added 1/3 c. finely diced vidalia onions, didn't have any parsley on hand so used italian seasoning & some chilli flakes. Turned out delicious. And like latkes, I ate mine with some FF sour cream.

No one here is a big cauliflower fan, but I we love your recipes and decided to try these. They were wonderful! I really felt more like I was eating potatoes than cauliflower. I used a 16oz bag of frozen cauliflower and with the 1/4c water it was the perfect consistency, but I only ended up with 12. Only think I omitted was the parsley. My dh and I used lo cal sour cream and the kids ranch for the dip.

I made these and I definitely did not get 24 by using a 1/4 cup measuring cup. I believe I got about 15 and they're quite large. The first night I didn't really like them and was very disappointed because I thought they would be fabulous. However, the leftover ones I really do like! I'm thinking the flavors just blended better after sitting for a while - the first night they tasted too much like flour. Do you think the flour could be reduced? I doubt mixing them up ahead would work very well. I also made them on a non-stick griddle with non-stick spray instead of the oil. Next time I am thinking of adding herbs and maybe zucchini like somone else said - that would be great.

Just found your site from a WW message board. I am so excited! Everything looks divine. Especially these. Also, I think it's really nice how often you comment back. With as many people as you have checking things out around here, I don't know how you find the time. (Don't feel obligated to comment on this now. I just thought it was cool.) :) Can't wait to try... EVERYTHING!

My husband and I really enjoyed these so much! I even raved about them on my weight loss blog! We now eat them as hash brown substitutes for breakfast. It's a great way to get extra veggies in the morning.

I have to agree that I too only got about 15 fritters using the 1/4 cup measure. Great recipe, Gina! Keep them coming :)

I made these with broccoli and they were delicious! i even got my 2 year old to eat her broccoli by calling them green pancakes. the only problem i had is that i liked them too much so i ate too many! love your site!

Hi Gina - this recipe sounds awesome! Just out of curiosity - what would you recommend serving these with? I'm thinking these would go nicely with chicken and some kind of sauce to tie everything together. Any suggestions?

I never touched cauliflower before I saw this recipe. Then I decided to try it, with a few modifications: I used half the cheese, added leftover quinoa and corn to the batter, and used scallions instead of parsley. Turned out great! The quinoa gave a bit of texture that I love. You're really helping me get my daily servings of veggies! Thanks!